Method and means for making pile fabrics



I ct. 4 1927.

0 T. BACHOFEN METHOD AND MEANS FOR MAKING PILE FABRICS Original Filed Aug. 6. 1921 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 W1. Warp Umeads' I l l in. P

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1 I 927 T. BACHOFEN IETHOD AND MEANS FOR MAKING PILE FABRICS Original Filed Aug. 6. 1921 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Z] n ma n {01 awk/#001 671 M anoint Oct. 4, 1927.

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THEODOR saononnn, OF wnsrsaoox, xua rnn-nssmnon rolnaoiaonnn NOVELTY FABRIC IHVEN-TIONS, mo, A. 0032011112101; on NEW JERSEY.

METHOD Aim MEANS mt Maxine ria'lnia'iifes.

Application ma aa uste, 1921, semi Nd. 490,352. semen-away raw.

My present invention more particularly concerns pile fabrics of the type known as filling velvets, that is, fabrics in which there is a ground fabr'i'e' eor'is'isting of the ordinary Warp; and Weft, ush'ally of relatively fine .thre'ad, in combination with a supplemental Weft or fillet which is bound in certain meshes of the warp and is floated ,over other interven'ing meshes; In some of the simple types of siich fabric, successive fillert h're'ads have their fl'oat' porti'ons' arranged in alignment lengthwise of the cloth so as to produce a stripe or eord'edetfect. See for instance the Bedford cord shown in Fig. I of patent to Mt -el 1,333,032, granted March 9, 1920 H'r etofoi e ithas been proposed' to out the centerof each float portion ofea'ch filler, thereby forming a double. row of more or less bushy, projecting ends giving the effect of a corduroy Velvet So far as I am aware, however, such cutting of the float filler has bee'n' bynieans of small, automatic scissors l'ocated' some two or four inches beyond Where the Weaving of the cloth has been completed, that is, beyond the point of farthest throw of the reed which pushes or beats the successive weft-s in the successive meshes of the warp. As fabrics of this type are commonly made of very fine threads running say from forty to two hundred threads per inch, a distance of two to four inches lengthwise of the fahric is, functionally considered, a long distance. By the time the fabric has traveled this distance beyond the final weaving point'Ahe transverse tension which is imposed on the Wefts by. the reed is entirely relieved and the cloth shrinks, that is, narrows to a considerable and more or less variable extent. Hence it is very difficult to locate the scissors so that they will cut evenlyat the centers of the respec tive floats constituting the lengthwise cord effect.

-lence one object of invention is to produce a' superior and more uniform cuting operation wherehyeach float thread may he cut at the exact point desired, either at the precise center to produce a regular corduroy effect, or, if desired, nearer one side than the other so as to produce alternately huge- Mid shorter piles; giving the effect terp'o'se a simple knife ed'ge hi the path offhb float atthe e'xi-tf enkff of are made-magnate m which the fi'ofaft will au'tamaucan i progress in its travel through th e mahihel Prefeta'hly this knife edge is lo'ca e behind' the point of farthest forward travel of t'h'e reed, s'o that-in its eitrem e fOf Walid positioh, the reed stretches and presses the flba't against the cutting edge, thereby severing the float at the desired point, at the very instant it is fully tensioned and in its fiha'l position iii the mesh of the warp.

Preferably each knife edge is f'r'med 6&1 and projects from the up "r edge'o'f a l'oh g thin steel blade. These blades iihrrh'allyfll e parallel between the l'oivermost set of Warp threads, that is to say, just above the lbyel i of the lay Where the sl1utt'le sl1o'ots across to l'a'ythe weft. The'shuttle tr'athhg above this level, lays the fi'l'l'er crosswise on the smooth upper edges of the blades; then ,the reed slicl'es the filler along said upper edges 0 until the filler encounters the projecting knife edge and-is severed. Adjacent reeds on'eithe'r side of the cutting edge are preferably spa ced apart far enough so that if, by any chance the float is not completely Severed 95 on the first beat of the reed, any undivided fihres will'surely be severed on the next beat of the reed, and, at no time ivill there be any danger of pinching of said fibres, as Where scissors are used.

While .it would be possible to arrange matters so that the knives would r'emainfixed in the position above described, one shuttle laying a ground Weftbelow. the blades and the other laying a float filler weft above the 95 blades, I prefer to have the ground' weft shuttle and the supplemental or filler Weft shuttle traverse the same path alternately. Hence another feature of my inventionis to provide a supplemental harness torQ-hieh W0 the rear ends of the blades are connected so that they may be lifted abo e the level of the uppermost warp threads during the ground pick, or, more generally stated, during the time when the shuttle is being shot across the lay warp to lay a weft which it is desired to have remain uncut. Of course, the dobby jack for lifting this harness may be arranged to operate at any time desired and it is thus possible to arrange to lay certain picks of the filler weft below the cutter blade so that certain floats will be uncut while others are cut, thus making it possible to produce a great variety of patterns.

The raising and lowering of the blade harness, as also the warp harness, maybe predetermined or controlled in any desired way either for producing .regular effects, as in the so-called shaft loom, or for producing any desired pictured or ornamental effects, as in the Jacquard loom, where, the harnesses being controlled by a pattern, the variations are almostunlimiteu.

In theparticular embodiment illustrated in the drawing allof theblades are connected to the heddles ofa single harness, but

obviously thenumber of harness shafts for the blades may be multiplied to any desired extent, after the same manner that warp harnesses are commonly multiplied, according as the desired patterns are more intricate or variegated.

Another feature of.my invention involves utilizing the spaces between the blade elements constituting the reed, as guides for keeping. the cutter blades upright andparallel with each other and with the warp.

The blades are preferably long strips of very thin spring steel. They are preferably quite narrow, and, when the blade is in the lowered position. they are substantially horizontal. The upper smooth edges are preferably lowest at or near the point Where the shuttle travels over them and preferably they incline upward from said point for a distance approximately equal to the throw or beat of the reed. Hence when a supplemental weft or filler is laid over them and is pushed forward by the reed, the float portion is gradually stretched upward away from the ground portion of the fabric, thereby increasing its tension at the point where the reed presses it against the steep upward incline of the cutting blade. The smooth upper edge of the blade on which the weft slides forward curves into the steeper cutting edge without forming any notches or angles in which fibres of the weft could be caught.

The above and other features of my invention may be more fully understood from the following description in connection with the accompanying drawings in which the views. so far as concerns the ordinary loom mechanism, are more or less diagrammatic, the full illustration being confined to my cutter attachment, the reed which cooperates therewith to effect the cutting. and the fabric to be out. In these drawings.

Figure 1 is a diagrammatic plan of fabric in a loom indicating how it narrows after leaving the reed, and where the cutting is performed in accordance with my present invention, as contrasted with the location of prior cutting devices.

Figure 2 is a top plan view showing the fabric on a verylarge scale and with the weave opened up so that the relations of the threads and my weft cutting attachment can be easily observed.

Figure 3 is a side elevation of one of my weft cutter blades.

Figure 4 is an enlarged, more or less dis torted, section showing the ground fabric and the severed float. the section being transversely of the warp and parallel with the weft.

Figure 5 is a similar view of the fabric .taken parallel with the warp and at right angles with the weft atv the point where the ground weft and the supplemental weft are bound together in pairs in the mesh of the warp.

Figure 6 is a vertical section parallel with the warp, showing my weft float cutter in the elevated, inoperative position and the parts of a loom which directly cooperate therewith.

Figure 7 is asimilar view of the cutter in lowered, operative position.

Figure 8 is a similar view on a larger scale showing the cutter in operative position and the reed at theforward point of its stroke at the instant when the float filler is to be severed.

Figure 9 is a similar view on a still larger scale showing the reed at an instant when the float is partially severed.

Fig. 10 shows a modified weave.

In Fig 1 I have indicated in a primitive way the relations of the unwoven portion of the warp threads in the rear of the reed A. the weaving line BB on which the fabric is transversely stretched by the reed A. and the gradual narrowing of the woven fabric to where this tension is wholly relieved, as at C-C.

As is well known in the art, the parallel warp threads are wound on a supply drum called the warp beam (not shown) and the finished fabric is wound up by a power driven take-up roll at the front of the machine (not shown). The warp beam. that is the supply roll, has a friction drag on it so that the warp threads are kept under a con siderable tension due to the pull of the take up roll which pulls them through the loom. The roll from which the warp threads are drawn and reed A, which guides said warp threads, are both substantially wider than the take-u roll which draws them so that the individual unwoven warp threads are loo ill"

.with an eye 5*, whereby, as shown in Figs. f

are anchored to crossbar 14; The blade is provided at the other end with another opening 5 ,.which engages pivot 15 on a vertically slidable harness heddle '16. This, being a rather flexible tension-member, is braced against forward stresses by means of suitably spaced stationary guides, 17, 17,

17, and 17". !Intermediate the ends, the.

blade extends through the reed A between two of the short blades or dents 3, 4, which serve to "steady and guide the same. The blade is further guided by a reed comb D of smaller size but of similar construction, which. extends across the loom.

- fabric as indicated in Figs. 8 and 9, and. is

supported in fixed position by or upon the side frames of theloom. It limits the downward movement of the blades under the pressure of spring 12. I

In this connection it is to be explained that the entire distance between the binding points of the floatin Fig. 2 may be only about of an inch or less when measured on fabric woven-of threads of minute sizes commonly used for this purpose, and it will be understood that there are as many blades 5 as thereare rows of floats which it is desired to have severed thereby.

Referring to Figs. 6 and 7. it will be evi-. dent that the cutter'blade may be rendered inactive by lifting the harness shaft 17 and heddle 16 to the position shown in Fig. 6, where the shuttle S which lays the ground weft 10, or shuttle S which lays the tiller weft, will pass under it; also that when the harness is depressed to bring the knife in position shown in Fig. 7. the shuttle will pass over it and will lay a weft which will be cut by the knife 6 as soon as the shuttle gets out of the way and the reed A is swung forward to the position shown in Figs. 8 and 9.

In the particular arrangment shown in the drawings where the purpose is to sever allof the float portions, it is obvious that the harness 16, 17, will be lifted to render the knives 5 inoperativeduring every stroke of the ground weft shuttle S and will be depressed during every stroke of the filler shuttle S. Obviously. however. the elevating and depressing of the blade may be governed in any desired way to produce any desired effect. a simple variation being to have the knife depressed to the operative position only during the laying of every second, third or fourth float, thus having any of desired sets of warp threads controlled therebyjand similarly thereinay be any number ofsets of harness to-controlany number of desired sets of float cutting blades so that the cuts may be'variegate'd across the width of the -frabric.jas well as lengthwise thereoff The harnesses for the previously described sets of warp threads I have shown inFigs, 6 to'S, harness shaft 18 controls all thebinder warp threads 7": these being threaded through the eyesof the hedd-les 18*, the latter being in the same plane and therefore appearing as one. Harness shaft 19-controlsall the binder warp threads 7,

u threaded-through the eyesofparallel heddles This reed comb 1s bridged across the 19*. .;As thegwar-p threads 7?.and 7 'are ,in cooperating pairs,---the binder. shafts 18 and 19 cooperate correlatively, .and, in the par' ticular-pattern shown, they reverse position one being up and the other-downalternately.

The ground warp harnesses are similarly arranged in pairs 20, 2Land122, 23;'20.being up when 21 is down, and 22 up .when 23 .is down,-to formthe complete shed compris ing all ground warp .as vwell as the binder warpduring the passage of the ground .weft shuttle S; and all four-shafts 20, 21, y 22, 23, being down out of the way at the time the float pick of shuttle S lays the float weft 9. As before explained there may be as many .harness sets and as many shafts in each set as may be necessary to produce the desired complexity of pattern. 1

With the above explanation it would be evident that Fig. 6 shows the position of parts when the knife is in the elevated posi tion. In such position it will be noted that the knife is parallel with, and above, the

upper layer or shed of warp thread. As shown, the ground warp threads 8 and 8", as well as the binder warp threads 7', 7", are in-the uppermost position and the reed A is upright in the rearward position, held there by the lay 24, the upper surfare of -which forms the support for the shuttle S as it is shot across by the usual picker stick (not shown), in the usual manner, to lay the binder weft 10.- Then. as shown in Fig. 7, elevated ground shafts 20, 22 and also the knife shaft 17, are lowered. and only the warp-threads 7 are elevated while the shuttle S lays the float weft 9.

The shuttle S, having completed its pick and being in the shuttle box beyond the lay 24, the latter moves forward carrying with it the reed A, which pushes the filler weft 9 forward along the smooth tops of the blades, tensioningthe filler and forcing it against the knife edge 6, as above described and as is shown in Figs. 8 and 9.

To make the fabric shown in Fig. 2 the above cycle of operations is repeated as often as desired.

It will be obvious that any desired sizes, colors, and materials may be employed for the ground weft and the same or any different sizes, colors and materials for the filler weft; also that any of the warp threads may be independently varied as to color, sizes and materials; and that the vast variety of variations in these respects may be combined with any of the previously described variations in locations and in the numbers of floats that are uncut or that are cut.

The threads which may be. used for either warp or weft may be of almost any known structure of single filaments of fibre, wire, or other, up to any desired number of assembled filaments or fibres and the assembled fibres may be entirely untwisted, slightly twisted, moderately twisted, or may be of extreme high twist, as in crepe, and the material may be anything known or desired, including cotton, linen, wool, silk, artificial silk, and metallic wires or filaments of all kinds.

While the particular fabric illustrated shows the ffiller weft as bound in by two pairs of warp threads and floated over sixteen pairs of warp threads, it is obvious that the numbers of the threads in each instance 1 may be varied to any desired extent and the term filler used herein is intended to cover all said variations, even down to the particular case where there is a knife blade for each and every pair of warp threads. It will be evident, however, to those skilled in the art that in this extreme case, the pile produced is not likely to be very firmly secured in the ground fabric unless some special precautions are taken, either as to the weaving or as to further securing the pile before it is put to use. For ordinary purposes, it will be found that three, and preferably four, binder warps between slitting knives will be practically the minimum and in most cases the float should be over two or more warp threads rather than one.

An illustrative example of fabric with very short float is shown in Fig. where there is one float with blade 5 thereunder, for every three pairs of warp threads.

I claim:

1. An attachment for looms having the usual harness, reed and shuttle, said attachment comprising a set of long, thin blades, a special harness in the rear of the reed to which said blades are attached, said blades extending through the reed parallel with the warp threads and terminating a suitable distance beyond the weaving point whereby said blades may be raised and lowered in approximate parallelism with any desired set of warp threads; said blades being provided with upwardly projecting, rearwardly directed cutting edges normally positioned near the point of farthermost forward throw of the reed and held stationary in such position during the forward stroke of the reed; together with the further feature of means for permitting backward and forward movement of the forward ends of the blades when the harness is raised, said means including a transverse member associated with the blade, means for guiding the same parallel with the fabric and a retracting spring to assist in drawing the blade forward when the harness is lowered.

2. An attachment for looms haying the usual-harness, reed and shuttle, said attachment comprising a set of long, thin blades, a special harness in the rear of the reed to which said blades are attached, said blades extending through the reed parallel with the warp threads and terminating a suitable distance beyond the weaving point whereby said blades may be raised and lowered in approximate parallelism with any desired set of warp threads; said blades being provided with upwardly projecting, rearwardly directed cutting edges normally positioned near the point of farthermost forward throw of the reed and held stationary in such position during the forward stroke of the reed; together with the further feature of a reed comb for guiding and maintaining parallelism of the forward ends of all the blades.

Signed at New York, in the county of New York and State of New York, this 5th day of August, A. D. 1921.

THEODOR BACHOFEN. 

